A New Project

It's taken me a long time to find JUST the right reds for these cardinals.  Just to be different, one cardinal will be gold.  

The instructions say to read them over THOROUGHLY before starting.  I've read the instructions about 10 times now, but some parts aren't making sense.  This WILL be a challenge.  Good thing I bought extra fabric (you know, JUST in case).  Stay tuned for further details!          -Chris

Snowflake Table Topper - Complete

This pattern called for varying shades of gray, but I wanted something bright and cheerful to offset the mid-winter doldrums.  The pattern comes from the Village Creek (http://www.villagecreeklodi.com/) in Lodi, WI.  (A quilt shop I need to visit and blog about soon).

I'm a little dissappointed in the backing fabric. Didn't notice the variation is shade until I got it home. Didn't think to center the light stripe until it was too late.  Oh well, live and learn.  Time to start another project!  :)

Mill House Quilts

A BIG "Thank You" to Karen at  http://cre8tivekick.blogspot.com/ You made my day!

Karen let me know that the book I've been looking for was at Mill House Quilts, in Waunakee, WI.  Turns out, Laura Halpin, author of Quilting with Laura: Patterns Inspired by the "Little House on the Prairie" Series,  teaches classes there.  So I headed straight to "The Only Waunakee in the World." 

Mill House Quilts has a wealth of books, patterns, fabrics, supplies and some one-of-a-kind notions.   They offer a wide variety of classes - which are held on the second story.  They had a LOT of kits - which are nice for someone like me who isn't always certain which fabrics will work well together.  I snapped some pics of the beautiful fabrics and quilts.   

This is Cheaper by the Dozen.  I liked the quilted hearts:

This is called Splashed:

Cleaning Out the Sewing Room - This would be a great stash-buster:

Here are some of the fabrics.  I hope my pics will do justice to these beautiful prints:

And here's what I bought.  Can't wait to read my new book:

I'll definitely be visiting Mill House Quilts again soon!

Less is More

Put this project aside cuz I wasn't sure how to quilt it. I envisioned beautiful FMQ snowflakes fluttering down from the heavens. But that vision far exceeds my skill level. So I was stumped. Today it hit me. A simple design was all it needed.  I left the markings on so you could see the stitching. I used chalk on the blue portion. I LOVE working with chalk.  Its so forgiving if you make a mistake.

PS - If you are snowbound in the Southeastern states, I apologize for this snow-related post.  When we got 19 inches last month, I cringed every time I saw a sign that said "Let it Snow!"   Take Care - Chris

Memory Lane

In the summer of 1980 I cooked at Hazen's Long Lake Lodge.  We worked hard, but time off was ALWAYS spent on the lake.  It was a wonderful summer - one of the best in my life.  Later I made this stitching to remember it by.  The picture hangs in my living room today.  Just for grins, I googled Hazen's LLL.  It has changed management, and the name is slightly different now.  But the lodge, the lake, and the woods all look the same!  You'll see a resemblance at: http://www.hazeninn.com/ 

Seeing the current pics takes my breath away!  I always dreamed of returning some day as a guest.  Now I have to go back.  The great north woods are calling me.

Little House on the Prairie Musical and Quilts

http://www.amazon.com/Quilting-Laura-Patterns-Inspired-Prairie/dp/1889825034

Have YOU seen this book?  I can find it on the net, but saw just one short comment. 

Little House on the Prairie, The Musical (http://littlehousethemusical.com/about/) came to town, with Melissa Gilbert playing Ma.  To kick the whole thing off, they held a real live hootenanny, which included teaching kids to quilt.  The hootenanny website referred to this book.  I missed these events, but heard they were amazing.  If Little House comes to your area, don't miss it!  

Meanwhile, if you've seen this book, please share an opinion?   Thanks!  - Chris

A Valentine Finish

I knew I had to get the lead out and finish this table runner. 

That is to say, I literally had to get pencil lead out of this quilt.  Thanks to all who offered tips!  Google told me to use an eraser.  Gee, like we need computers to tell us that! LOL

I decided to start with the gentlest suggestions and gradually move toward more drastic measures.  Soaked it in Quilt Wash for 3 hours - which made no difference at all.  Then I took a brand new bar of Ivory Soap and gently scrubbed on the stitching itself.  At first I thought the white soap was just accumulating on the quilt, but after rinsing it looked much better.   Phew, what a relief!

I hope your Valentine projects are coming along well, and without incident!  -Chris

Horrible Hot Pads

You know what happens when you give someone beautiful hot pads? 

They don't use them.  I myself am guilty of this heinous crime. So I've decided to recycle old class projects (and experiments gone bad) into what I call "Horrible Hot Pads."  They are homely enough to actually use.  Who cares if you spill tomato sauce on them?  They were horrible to start with. 

The stitching here is awful, but I liked the fabric so I sewed two quilt sandwiches together and added a binding.  I always wanted a hot pad big enough for my pizza pan - now I have one!  

I had this brainstorm back in 2009, so it won't count toward my 2010 recycling score card.  Still looking for other quilters to join me in finding ways to use recycled and scrap fabric.  See http://quilt-talk.blogspot.com/2010/01/recycling-challenge-2010.html and http://quilt-talk.blogspot.com/2010/01/presidential-puppy-toy.html for more information and ideas.

Happy Quilting!

Chris

Thread Heaven Conditioner

 The LQS recommended Thread Heaven Thread Conditioner and Protectant over old fashioned bee's wax.  I've used bee's wax for 20 years, and never had trouble with wax on my quilt.  But they didn't carry bee's wax, so I decided to give it a try.  Turns out I like it pretty well.  So far I've used it to hand stitch bindings.  Haven't done any hand quilting with it yet.  So the jury is still out....will keep you "posted."  LOL

Help Needed!

I can't believe it.  I traced my quilting design with a pencil.  Pinned the tracing paper to my quilt and stitched.  Never even THOUGHT about the graphite - which came thru with every needle stroke.  Now my white thread is an ugly dark gray. 

Google tells me to treat with ammonia, then launder.  But I can't wash an unfinished quilt sandwich.  Will it wash out later?  Someone somewhere HAS to have made this error before.  Puh-leeease tell me it will be OK.

Meanwhile, how do I mark the remainder?  I avoided ballpoint, thinking it would do the same thing.  Maybe quilting pens work on paper?